Poland Calls for Cold War-Style Deterrence to Counter AI Cyber Attacks

Polish Deputy Prime Minister Krzysztof Gawkowski has called on European nations to establish a Cold War-style deterrence framework to counter state-sponsored cyber warfare powered by artificial intelligence. Speaking to journalists during an event attended by Euronews, Gawkowski warned that digital sabotage against vital infrastructure represents an active conflict on the continent.

Gawkowski, who also heads Poland's Ministry for Digital Affairs, estimated that the frequency of cyberattacks in Poland will increase tenfold by 2027. He attributed this projected surge to the rapid development and growing availability of sophisticated frontier large language models. According to the minister, these advanced systems allow state actors to scale digital operations and target critical networks with far greater effectiveness than standard cybercriminals.

To address this escalation, Gawkowski urged European governments to adopt a strategy reminiscent of the Cold War doctrine of mutually assured destruction, which prevented direct conflict between the United States and the Soviet Union. He stated that European defense policy must clearly convey an intent to strike back against hostile state actions to prevent foreign powers from paralyzing national infrastructure. Without a declared commitment to counterstrikes, he warned, European nations risk losing the capacity to retaliate effectively.

The minister specifically identified Russia and Belarus as state-level adversaries operating in the digital domain. He pointed to recent cyberattacks that targeted dozens of supermarkets across Europe—disrupting refrigeration systems and generating millions in losses—as a prelude to more extensive disruptions. Authorities in Moscow and Minsk were not quoted in the report, and neither government has issued an official response to Gawkowski's remarks.

Gawkowski further challenged the frequent classification of digital sabotage as hybrid warfare, a concept used by members of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization to avoid triggering Article 5 mutual defense obligations. He asserted that digital attacks on hospitals, power plants, and commercial networks should be recognized as modern acts of war. NATO last revised its official strategy on artificial intelligence in 2024.

Written by Freya Stensrud freya.stensrud@alpineweekly.com